Bonum Certa Men Certa

Richard Stallman Gives Reasons Not to use ChatGPT

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Nov 21, 2025

By Richard Stallman

ChatGPT is not "intelligence", so please don't call it "AI".

I define "intelligence" as being capable of knowing or understanding, at least within some domain. ChatGPT cannot know or understand anything, so it is not intelligence. It does not know what its output means. It has no idea that words can mean anything.

I call it a "bullshit generator" because it generates output "with indifference to the truth".

The same applies to many other "generative systems", for the same reasons

The widespread public error of attributing intelligence to those systems leads millions of people to a misplaced trust for them. Please join me in spreading the word that people should not trust systems that mindlessly play with words to be correct in what those words mean.

Another reason to reject ChatGPT in particular is that users cannot get a copy of it. It is unreleased software -- users cannot get even an executable to run, let alone the source code. The only way to use it is by talking to a server which keeps users at arm's length.

Doing your own computing via software running on someone else's server inherently trashes your computing freedom. █


Copyright (C) 2024 Richard Stallman

Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire page are permitted in any medium, provided this notice is preserved.

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